University officials field media questions about investigation

President Mary Sue Coleman (Coleman), Director of Intercollegiate Athletics
Bill Martin (BM) and Vice President and General Counsel Marvin Krislov (MK)
fielded a number of media questions about the Ed Martin issue. Part of the
Q&A follows.

Q: Why did you choose to wait for this letter of inquiry?
Why are we making this announcement today instead of during the summer?

BM: We didn't know what the contents of
the letter would be. We didn't know what the charges were going to be
until Oct. 29. Is it your understanding that the NCAA will agree with
these sanctions?

Coleman: We don't know what the NCAA will
do. As you know, we have to go before the Infractions Committee. We certainly
hope that they will.

Amaker (Photo by Martin Vloet, U-M Photo Services)

Q: Do you have any reason to believe the NCAA will
not accept your sanctions?

BM: You never know. We trust that they
will look at our sanctions. We looked at other sanctions across the country
and ours are consistent. One thing not seen in the press release is scholarship
reductions.

Q: Do you think that is something the NCAA may come
back with?

BM: We looked at the scholarship issue
but we didn't impose any scholarship reductions on the program, principally
because the NCAA looks at a reduction of scholarships when there has been
a recruitment infraction. This is not a recruitment infraction, this is
an extra benefit situation.

Q: Do you think that what you have done today
will be enough for the public and not affect your fundraising and your
recruiting?

Coleman: I think we have done a lot of things
the right way. We hired one of the very best coaches in the country. I
feel very confident that we can move forward. I feel very confident that
our alumni will understand. I think they will be relieved, as we are,
to get beyond this and to get on to great basketball.

Q: How do you think this will affect your recruiting?

BM: I think it will be positive because
we're about to get this entirely behind us. Just look at how Coach [Tommy]
Amaker has recruited this year. He's done an exceptional job. I think
it is an absolute positive, instead of an unknown. We're going to get
this behind us very quickly.

Q: Will the postseason ban include the Big Ten
Tournament?

BM: No, because that is part of the regularly
scheduled Big 10 Conference season.

Q: Is it fair for a program to have to punish itself
so severely when the people who were running the program in the past have
gotten away without punishment?

BM: It probably isn't but that's the way
the system works. The NCAA does not look at the passage of time.

Q: If you take away the Final Fours, in the record
books, what happens to those seasons?

BM: When we delete those wins from
the records, we no longer won those games. By default, the other teams
won those games.

Q: Were any other players mentioned but these four?

BM: No other players were mentioned in
the letter of inquiry or in the report.

MK: We did learn that Mr. Martin provided
some benefits to some other Detroit-area high schoolers, who later attended
other collegiate institutions.

Q: Can you describe your emotions over this?

BM: Frankly, they are very mixed. ...
I'm relieved that we're so close [to this end], but at the same time,
I am taking down banners at Crisler Arena and rewriting the record books.
That's tough. That's tough for an institution with the traditions and
history we've had.

Coleman: As a newcomer, when I realized
what I was going to say today, it's tough. We're embarrassed. It is not
what Michigan is all about now or going into the future. This has been
a big impact.

Q: How concerned are you that the perception is
that the basketball program is renegade, even if you are clean for
10 years?

BM: All we can do is demonstrate to our
fans, our alumni and the entire Michigan family our commitment to winning
the right way. You win on the court and off the court. I think we regain
our credibility by first winning off the courtwith our kids graduating
and being good citizens.

Q: You said in March that the Fab 5 had done a wonderful
job and Steve Fisher had left a legacy. Why did you say that then and
how do you feel about that statement today?

BM: They have left their mark on Michigan.
Obviously, the events that have unfolded here today have tainted that
history. That's why we're removing them from the record books, why we're
taking the banners down.